304km, 19 hours, 3,900 alt
Day 1 has been my bogey man from the outset, and if I am honest I have been petrified of this stage from January. I know my training has not been up to scratch with most rider and my propensity to cramp on day 1 of an event is almost a foregone conclusion (just ask Fish, my epic and freedom partner). So I was incredibly stressed at blowing up after 200 and then having a miserable walk into the night to make the check point at the top of a massive alpine like switch back climb atop 1000m of alt gain in 20km.
The fantastic news is that it much better than expected and feel like I belong in the race and can now settle into routine with a lot less doubt at the back of my mind.
We all set off at 6am from the Pantheon of Fallen Antifascists monument at 6am. Much excitement and nerves, and again reminded that I need more ink to be mixing up with this lot 😂. The pace was frantic and we all bombed along at 30km/h for the first 20km. I did not feel fully comfortable on the bike and was burning too many matches. We then hit the first gravel section. Here I was KAKING myself. My little 26mm road tyres ( although I did boot them at a shop in Burgas) were I was sure to slash open and rip up at any moment. In fact they didn’t and held remarkably well across some pretty sketch surfaces all day.
After around 120 km we hit the first big road climb of the CP1 parcour. In lush forest we climbed switchback style up to the top of the mountain range that then drops you off on honestly the best descent I have ever ridden (I may say this a few times when we hit the alps) with 15km of windy whoops on immaculate tar surface – heaven. One of the challenges with celiac disease is that I can’t eat the rolls and bread treats that the other riders are grabbing in cafe, my body also cannot live on energy bars and sugar. So I have to force my self to stop and eat a ‘real meal’ pref at lunch time to give me the sustenance I need and ease stomach cramps from the amount of sugar intake. At the top of this climb I found a great little restaurant and had some top garlic chicken and chips – tasty.
Video:
The section from 200km to 250km was dreadful. The heat at 2pm is at its worst and the 38c temp was radiating badly off the black asphalt main artery road we were on – plenty riders really suffering with heat exhaustion and many chose to take naps on petrol forecourts to see off the worst of it. Here is started to get twinges of cramp and started to fear the worst.
Finally we made it to the turnoff for the final monument climb. It’s an iconic spot and something I have Google streetviewed over 20 times as my mental marker. I chose to have a 20min lie down with a few other riders and let the legs recover and core body temp restore itself.
At 9pm I set off to climb the beast. It was all about conserving energy, keeping cramp at bay. This meant zig zags, stand pedal, sit pedal, and a brisk walk – all interspersed to keep the legs using diff muscles. The darkness also helped to close the scenery in and just focus on the job.
At 16 hours and 55min elapsed time I made the Check Point. Incredibly relieved and very stoked at how I proactively ‘managed myself’ to get to through to CP without blowing out. Lots of confidence gained.
I then set off on the next section of Parcour for 20km to reach my hotel at 304km for the day with head hitting pillow at 1am. Shew!!
I have opted for a lie in this morning and await breakfast at 8 am. Lots of climbing in the mid section today but should only be 250km and hopefully not as late as yesterday.
Thanks again for all the support from home – really really helps. I am lovin this adventure 😁